Coin Company Hires Investigator to Prove Consumer Fraud

Austin-based U.S Money Reserve, Inc. is pursuing a permanent injunction against a band of former employees, who formed their own coin company by allegedly stealing the company's consumer accounts.

U.S Money Reserve, doing business as United States Rare Coin & Bullion Reserve (USRCB), filed its suit, USRCB vs. United States Money Exchange et al, earlier this month.

PI Who Broke Fay Case Publishes Book

He’s been on Larry King and many other news programs. He’s covered major national crime cases. He’s handled murders and vicious divorces.

But no case dumbfounded private investigator Vito Colucci like his investigation of former St. John Roman Catholic Parish pastor, the Rev. Michael Jude Fay, in the spring of 2006.

Fay, who pled guilty to stealing millions from parishioners in September, was initially investigated by Colucci, who was hired by former priest Michael Madden and former parish bookkeeper Bethany D’Erario.

“It was so amazing, so off the charts. It made my jaw drop,” he said.

Death Crash Bike Was 'Removed and Burned'

An investigation into a crash that claimed a teenager's life was "seriously hampered" when the illegal scramble bike he had been riding was deliberately removed from the scene, dumped and set on fire before police arrived.

An inquest in Bradford into the death of Anthony Pearson, 19, today heard how a man told police he had been pressured into driving the bike away from Broadstone Way, Holme Wood, by four other men who had picked it up from the road and loaded it on to his van.

An accident investigator estimated Mr Pearson could have been traveling at about 40mph in a 30mph zone on the off-road moto-cross style bike at the time of the crash.

Fake “PIs” Are Actually Scammers Passing on Malware

It looks like Veronica Mars and Magnum, PI are getting into the malware business.

Commtouch, an Israeli security firm that specializes in protecting e-mail integrity, says that it has detected a new malware outbreak that is spread through e-mails claiming to be from private investigators. According to Commtouch, the e-mails tell recipients that a private investigator has been recording the recipients’ phone calls and that an audio file of one of the calls is attached to the message. When unwitting recipients download the “call” to their hard drives, their computers become infected with malware.

Boeing Investigates Employees

Within its bowels, The Boeing Co. holds volumes of proprietary information deemed so valuable that the company has entire teams dedicated to making sure that private information stays private.

One such team, dubbed "enterprise" investigators, has permission to read the private e-mails of employees, follow them and collect video footage or photos of them. Investigators can also secretly watch employee computer screens in real time and reproduce every keystroke a worker makes, the Seattle P-I has learned.

PIs Search For Missing Man Gone For Seven Years

Luther Boyt loved life.

Luther Boyt loved his family and friends.

Luther Boyt loved his money.

So when the midtown Kansas City man went missing the morning of Nov. 26, 2000, his friends knew the party-throwing, piano-playing, antique-collecting man hadn’t just skipped town.

They knew something bad must have happened.

But they have never found his body.

So the mystery of what happened to Boyt still swirls today, seven years after the 59-year-old failed to show up one morning to help his friends finish moving his stuff from his Janssen Place mansion into an apartment.

Charge Girlfriend Spied on Private Eye

Former Hollywood private eye Anthony Pellicano is seeking dismissal of charges against him in a wiretapping case on grounds of government misconduct.

Defense attorneys charge an FBI agent and federal prosecutors repeatedly violated Pellicano's rights by using his girlfriend to secretly gather evidence against him, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday.

Britney Hires Private Investigator

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Private Eye Raises Ire of Voters in Southeast

On Wednesday night, Geoffrey Reinwald was preparing to go to a dinner meeting when he heard a knock at the door.

A "big guy," he described, flashed an ID card and said he was a private investigator hired by Michael Rights, a candidate for Southeast supervisor. The man, Reinwald continued, proceeded to ask him whether he was out of town on Election Day and when he returned. Reinwald said he was in Mexico - a vacation he had planned with his wife back in May - from Nov. 3 to 10. After asking Reinwald whether his wife, who also voted absentee, was with him in Mexico - a foolish question by his account - the investigator walked away, he recalled.

Witness Says DNA on Tape not Fox's

A private investigator revealed Friday in court that DNA—apparently from the person who abducted, sexually assaulted and killed Riley Fox, 3, of Wilmington—was left on crime-scene duct tape as well as in the girl's rape kit. And it did not match her father, Kevin, who was charged in the case.

Steven Kirby's testimony in federal court led to legal wrangling and further testimony that made it clear the duct-tape DNA did not match Fox's genetic profile.

City's Investigation Returns Allegations Against Former Fire Chief

The private investigator hired by Mayor Katie Whitley and the Hanceville City Council concluded his investigation of former Fire Chief Mike Watson this week and submitted a summary including 15 allegations against the fire department.

City council members said Daniel Howell was paid $40 an hour from the city budget to look into activities at the Hanceville Fire and Rescue Department after newly-purchased equipment and files disappeared following Watson’s dismissal.

Private Eyes: Internet Tempts Cheatin' Hearts

When Beverly Barraque got a phone call from the Dallas-based television show "Cheaters" about working a case, she didn't think twice about turning down the offer.

The Beaumont private investigator didn't want to get involved, she said, because she didn't want to "smear people's business all over television."

Sales Clerk Found Her True Talent as Private Detective

An interesting sideline developed from Jeanne B. Thorsen's part-time job as a sales clerk at a clothing store: She became a private detective.

Her road to becoming a private investigator started in a small boutique called Ruth Miller's, located in the former Arlington Market shopping center in Arlington Heights.

Hanceville Hires Private Investigator

The Hanceville City council is currently paying a private investigator to look into activities that happened under former Fire and Rescue Chief Mike Watson.

“We were aware that there was probably some equipment missing,” councilman Hubert Jones said, explaining why the council hired the investigator.

How to Choose an Executive Protection Firm

Hiring the right people to protect you when traveling abroad can be a matter of life or death. Here’s a quick list of what criteria and qualifications you should look for when choosing a private-security team, gathered through interviews with top security experts.

Accidental Verdict in Death Crash

A verdict of accidental death was yesterday recorded on a man who was killed in a motorcycle accident in Suffolk which left his three children orphaned.

Glenn Rossell had himself been widowed three years earlier when his wife Amanda died from breast cancer aged 34.

Accident investigator PC Jeff Rogers said in a statement that there was no evidence of the motorcycle having collided with any other vehicle before Mr Rossell lost control and it toppled on to its side, throwing him off.

The Spy Who Shopped Me

We check in this week with one of the CIA’s top local spies, a woman who keeps her identity so well cloaked that we’re surprised she even talked to us. No names, please, and certainly no photos. This is vital work and secrecy is the name of the game. Business lives depend on it.

The CIA, in this instance, is Creative Image Associates, a Lunenburg, Mass.-based intelligence firm that specializes in what’s known as secret or mystery shopping. Our operative uses fake accounts at local banks, infiltrates hotels and car dealerships and has even served behind enemy lines, hired by one company to spy on a rival.

The Right To Snoop

The situation in Austin shows that every parent's worst fear can become a reality. But there are some things you can do to become more aware of who's taking care of your kids.

Some might call it spying or snooping, others call it protection and due diligence, but hiring a private investigator to get background checks can be a small price for peace of mind.

Oprah School Probe Under Wraps

Talkshow queen Oprah Winfrey jetted into South Africa on Friday to meet investigators probing a case of "misconduct" at her exclusive girls' school south of Johannesburg.

It came after the school this week announced that it had launched an investigation into a single "serious claim" of misconduct against a dormitory parent who was, as a result, removed from the premises.

PI Board to Rule on Speed Van Questions

It won't be easy to determine whether employees of the company watching for speeders in Lafayette should be private investigators, says the director of the Louisiana State Board of Private Investigator Examiners, so he is leaving it up to the board to decide.

Pat Englade, a former Baton Rouge police chief who advises the board, said several factors have to be settled before a decision can be made.

Hiring A Bodyguard Isn't Just For The Rich And Famous

It's because of this risk that many people who are involved in a legal situation find themselves in need of a bodyguard. He or she may be scheduled to testify against a gang member, may be a whistle blower within an organization, or may even be an expert witness for the prosecution. In order to avert the risk, a bodyguard is brought on as an intermediary – someone who will stay with the witness and identify an increasing threat before it gets out of control.

Therefore, when hiring a bodyguard, prosecutors often look to someone who they know that they can trust such as a private investigator to provide the service.

Private Investigator Told to 'Dig Deep' by Anonymous Caller

A private investigator employed by Legal Aid before Andrew Mallard's murder trial was urged by an anonymous caller to dig deep into the case, the CCC has heard.

Former policeman and PI Les Robertson told the inquiry he received a mysterious phone call from someone he believed was working on the Mallard investigation in 1995.

Utah Jurors Feel Harassed by Jeffs' Defense Team

Utah jurors who recently convicted a polygamous-sect leader on sex charges say a private investigator has been harassing them with phone calls.

The foreman of the Washington County, Utah, jury says he and others have gotten unwanted calls from an investigator hired by Warren Jeffs' attorneys. The calls caused Utah state District Judge James Shumate to issue an order barring contact with jurors who don't want to be called.

Mental Care Bully Probe

A private investigator is probing an allegation of bullying and harassment against a Tasmanian Mental Health Services employee.

One other formal investigation into the staff member about a complaint of similar behavior was not upheld.

Anna Nicole Nannies Deny Gay Lovers Claim

Two nannies cited by Rita Cosby’s book on Anna Nicole Smith deny that they ever told a private investigator that Howard K. Stern and Larry Birkhead were gay lovers.

The New York Daily News posted an item Monday, Oct. 8, in its gossip section, in which it reported that Quethlie Alexis and Nadine Alexie, according to their lawyer, Elizabeth Thompson.